few or none. Matthiessen and Nich- 
olson do come across some bones of 
killed elephants but they find nothing 
on the scale of poaching seen in Kenya 
in recent years. Nevertheless, Nich- 
olson concludes that poachers must 
have decimated the herds. Matthies- 
sen. on the other hand, observes that 
elephants are known to desert an area 
for their own reasons and to stay away 
for years. Although the hard evidence 
of truly major damage to wildlife is 
lacking. Matthiessen allows his elo- 
quence to serve the more pessimistic 
view. 
“We gazed about us for a little while 
at the vast wilderness all around,” he 
writes of a visit to the reserve's Nan- 
danga Mountain. “No sign of man, 
no marks or sounds, for hundreds of 
square miles. Even the ring-necked 
doves had fallen silent. There is a si- 
lence in the imminence of animals and 
also in the echo of their noise, but 
the dread silence is the one that rises 
from a wilderness from which all the 
wild animals have gone. In the dead 
still afternoon of the old continent, 
it seemed to me that the silence of 
Nandanga still had an imminence, a 
listening, a waiting in the air.” 
It is a cryptic remark, deliberately 
left cryptic, just as Matthiessen leaves 
many other thoughts in a state of am- 
bivalence and observations open to 
several interpretations. Africa is like 
that. 
Tanzania is one of the world’s poor- 
est countries and unquestionably must 
concentrate its resources on its own 
economic development. Building a 
dam in the Selous may even be the 
right thing for Tanzania to do. But 
the Selous is every acre the glorious 
wildlife spectacle that Matthiessen 
and van Lawick show it to be. And 
it is one of the last great wildernesses 
on earth. Compromises with economic 
development may destroy the real Af- 
rica in the minds of people like Brian 
Nicholson, but if Sand Rivers can 
rally enough international support for 
the Selous before it really is too late, 
it will have served not only Tanzania. 
It will have assured all the rest of 
us that our real Africa will always 
be there. 
Boyce Rensberger, a science writer 
who lived in East Africa in 1973 and 
1974, recently joined Science 81 as 
a senior editor. His book, The Cult 
of the Wild, a study of attitudes to- 
ward wildlife conservation, was pub- 
lished in 1977. 
My Feet Were Killing Me...Until 
I Found Relief in Germany! 
It was the Euro- 
pean trip 1 had 
always dreamed 
about. I had the 
time and money to 
go where I wanted 
— see what I 
wanted. But I soon 
learned that 
money and time 
don't mean much 
when your feet 
hurt too much to 
walk. After a few days of sightseeing my 
feet were killing me. 
Oh. I tried to keep going. In Paris I 
limped through Notre Dame and along 
the Champs-Elysees. And I went up in 
the Eiffel Tower although I can't hon- 
estly say I remember the view . My feet 
were so tired and sore my whole body 
ached. While everybody else was hav- 
ing a great time. I was in my hotel room. 
I didn't even feel like sitting in a 
sidewalk cafe. 
The w hole trip was like that until 1 got 
to Hamburg. Germany. There, by acci- 
dent. I happened to hear about an excit- 
ing breakthrough for anyone who suf- 
fers from sore, aching feet and legs. 
This wonderful invention was a 
custom-made foot support called Flexi- 
ble Featherspring. When I got a pair and 
slipped them into my shoes my pain dis- 
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shock absorbing support they gave my 
feet was like cradling them on a cushion 
of air. I could walk, stand even run. The 
relief was truly a miracle. 
And just one pair was all I needed. I 
learned that women also can wear them 
— even with sandals and open backed 
shoes. They're completely invisible. 
Imagine how dumbfounded I was to 
discover that these miraculous devices 
were sold only in Europe. Right then I 
determined that I would share the mira- 
cle I discovered in Germany with my 
own countrymen. 
In the last nine years over a quarter 
million Americans of all ages — many 
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mine — have experienced this blessed 
relief for themselves. 
Here's w , hy Feathersprings work for 
them and why they can work for you. 
These supports are like nothing you've 
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Unlike conventional devices, they actu- 
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Whatever your problem — corns, cal- 
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springs w ill bring you relief w ith every 
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Don't suffer pain and discomfort 
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WHAT PEOPLE SAY 
ABOUT THE MIRACLE: 
Received my wife's Feathersprings 
two days ago. They are super — neither 
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had terrible feet for years; already no 
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this result is amazing." 
Dr. C.O.C. Tucson. Arizona. 
My husband felt a great relief and no 
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heard of them twenty years ago. ’ Mrs. 
F.S. Metairie. Louisiana. 
/ have checked your corporation with 
I A Consumer Protection Agency), and 
received an excellent report . " 
H.S.H. Louisville. Kentucky . 
© 1981 Featherspring International Corp 
1 31 00 Stone Avenue North Seattle Washington 98133 
I FEATHERSPRING INTERNATIONAL 
I CORPORATION 
| 13100 Stone Avenue. North Dept. NH061 
j Seattle. Washington 98133 
| YES! I want to learn more about the relief 
j Flexible Featherspring Foot Supports can 
| give. Please send me your free brochure. I 
understand that there is no obligation and 
that no salesman will call. 
Print Name 
Address 
City 
State Zip 
When in Seattle visit the Featherspnng building 
J 
